1st Place, Espen Rasmussen, Norway

Series description

Coal used to be the gold of West Virginia, but with the election of President Obama came new environmental regulations that, together with lower prices for coal, led to huge redundancies. The coal became a curse for many of the coal cities in West Virginia. In 1940, 140,000 people worked in these mountains but today only about 15,000 are left in the coal business. Towns like Beckley and Mullens have few other sources of income. Drugs, pills, alcohol and violence are prevalent in many places, and many young people are forced to leave in search of work.